BMG U.K. signs Leona Lewis

Singer nabs worldwide publishing deal

Deal covers Lewis’ future songwriting, as well as her songs from her sophomore album “Echo.”

“Leona is a staggering musical talent, going from strength to strength as her songwriting develops. We’re thrilled to be working with her and her management team,” said Tony Moss, Managing Director BMG Rights Management U.K.

Said Lewis, “I’m so pleased to be working with BMG, I’m really excited about working together and the future.”

Lewis gained mainstream recognition after winning the third season of “X Factor” in 2006, after which she was signed to a five-album, $9.7 mil deal with Clive Davis’ J Records.

Her debut single “A Moment Like This” (a cover of the track originally recorded by Kelly Clarkson, which was written by Jörgen Elofsson and John Reid) became the fastest selling U.K. single after being downloaded over 50,000 times within 30 minutes of its release. Her second single, “Bleeding Love”, reached number one positions in over 30 singles charts around the world. Lewis became the first British solo artist to top the Billboard 200 with her debut album “Spirit,” which has sold over 6.5 million copies worldwide.

Lewis’ second album “Echo,” released in November 2009, has gone double platinum in the U.K. The album debuted at number 13 in the U.S. with sales of 68,413, but in the second week sales fell by 68% to just 21,431. Worldwide, it has sold over 1 million copies. The first single from this album, “Happy,” was written by Lewis, together with songwriters Ryan Tedder (who wrote “Bleeding Love”) and Evan Bogart and produced by Tedder.

Lewis also recently recorded “I See You,” the theme song for James Cameron’s “Avatar.” Track was nominated for Best Original Song at the 67th Golden Globe Awards.

Currently, Lewis and her management are preparing for her first world tour scheduled to starting later in the year.